Surveying and measured building surveys
Measured building surveys, condition and defect reporting, area schedules and setting-out checks, produced by a quantity surveying practice — with the professional limits stated openly.
Surveying the building that actually exists
Drawings describe a building somebody intended to construct. A survey records the building that is standing. Between those two things sit the extensions built without approval, the walls moved on site, the boundary fence that is not where the plan says it is, and fifty years of alteration nobody documented.
Building and measured surveying is the foundation of everything else we do. You cannot cost what you have not measured, and you cannot verify what has no baseline. This service produces that baseline.
- Measured building surveyEvery dimension, opening and level recorded, producing accurate plans, sections and elevations of the building as it stands.
- Condition and defects surveyWhat is wrong, where it is, how extensive it is and what it will cost to put right, itemised rather than summarised.
- Pre-purchase construction surveyWhat you are actually buying, what has been built, and what it will cost to correct, before you commit.
- Area schedulesGross and lettable areas measured to a named standard, for leases, service charges and cost allocation.
- Setting-out verificationA check that what has been set out on the ground matches the approved drawings, before concrete is poured.
- Existing-building documentationDrawings produced from a measured survey where none exist, suitable for planning, costing or a sale.
What this service can and cannot do
- We measure and recordDimensions, areas, condition, defects and quantities, stated with a basis anyone can check.
- We do not certify boundariesThe legal extent of land is established by a survey plan signed by a SURCON-registered surveyor. We can compare the physical site against a plan you supply, but we cannot determine title boundaries.
- We do not give structural opinionsWhether a structure is safe, or whether a crack is structural, is a question for a registered structural engineer. We record what we see and say plainly when an engineer is needed.
- We do not conduct cadastral surveysStatutory survey work, charting and Certificate of Occupancy survey plans require a licensed surveyor.
These limits are not modesty. Acting outside them would produce a document that a bank, court or land registry would reject, and would waste your money.
How the endorsement works: where a document needs a signature that the law reserves to another profession, it is reviewed and signed by a registrant of that profession, and their name and registration number appear on the report. We prepare the measurement, the costing and the technical evidence; the registrant accepts professional responsibility for the statutory sign-off. Nothing is issued under a title we do not hold.
Where a building survey earns its fee
Four situations where guessing is expensive.
Buying a property
A building can look finished and photograph beautifully while the roof has no bracing, the slab reinforcement is undersized and the services were never tested. A construction survey before you pay finds those things while you still have leverage.
Renovating an older building
Existing buildings in Nigeria rarely match their drawings. A measured survey means the renovation is priced against reality rather than against a plan drawn in 1985.
A project that has stalled
Before anyone spends more money, establish what exists, what it is worth, and what remains. That requires measurement, not opinion.
Leases and shared buildings
Rent and service charges apportioned on a measured basis, with the standard named, so the split can be defended rather than argued.
How a survey is carried out
Brief and scope
What decision the survey will inform, which determines how detailed it needs to be and what it must include.
Attendance
The building is measured on site, room by room and element by element, with photographs and notes.
Drafting and checking
Plans, areas and schedules are produced, then checked against the site record before issue.
Report and follow-up
A written document with the measurements, the defects, the cost implications and any matters that need another professional.
Building and measured survey questions
Is a building survey the same as a structural survey?
No, and the difference matters. A building survey records and measures what exists: dimensions, areas, condition, defects and work required. A structural survey is an engineering assessment of whether a structure is safe and adequate, and it must be carried out by a registered structural engineer. Where a survey we do raises a structural question, we say so in writing and recommend that you appoint an engineer. We do not give structural opinions.
Can you confirm the boundary of a plot?
No. Boundaries and the legal extent of land are established by a survey plan prepared and signed by a surveyor registered with the Surveyors Council of Nigeria (SURCON). We can measure what is physically on the ground and compare it with a survey plan you supply, but we cannot determine, certify or sign a boundary. Where a boundary is in question, you need a licensed surveyor.
My building has no drawings at all. Can you still help?
Yes, and this is one of the most common reasons clients call. A measured building survey produces an accurate record of the building as it stands, which can then be used for a bill of quantities, a renovation estimate, a lease area schedule or a valuation. Without it, any figure for the work is guesswork.
Do you measure for leases and service charges?
Yes. We measure lettable and gross areas so that rent, service charge apportionment and occupancy costs are calculated on a stated basis rather than an assertion. The measurement standard used is named in the report, so the figure can be checked.
Need a building measured?
Tell us the address, the age of the building and what you need to decide. We will confirm scope, fee and the earliest date.
We read everything sent to info@peterch.org. Replies go out by WhatsApp — include a working number, with country code, in your first message.